


glitter all over your face, thank god for my little space

by askmeaboutmyoctopustheory



Category: Marvel 616, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff, Hanukkah, Idiots in Love, Jewish Bucky Barnes, Jewish Maximoff Twins, Kwanzaa, Scientist Shuri (Marvel), winter holidays
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-15
Updated: 2020-02-15
Packaged: 2021-02-28 07:39:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22730035
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/askmeaboutmyoctopustheory/pseuds/askmeaboutmyoctopustheory
Summary: Wanda had told her coworkers that her girlfriend worked odd hours when ever they would ask her out for drinks or socializing. They're all thrilled to meet said girlfriend at the company holiday party.Only one problem. Wanda doesn't have a girlfriend.
Relationships: Gwen Poole/Gwen Stacy, Kate Bishop/America Chavez, Wanda Maximoff/Shuri
Comments: 11
Kudos: 26
Collections: Marvel Rare Pair Bang 2019





	glitter all over your face, thank god for my little space

**Author's Note:**

  * For [HeyBoy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HeyBoy/gifts).



> Hello all!! I am so beyond excited to be finally able to post this!!! Welcome to my small canoe of a ship!!!
> 
> Thank you HeyBoy for the AMAZING art and for being super chill to work with and overall being a lovely collaborator.
> 
> Thank you to Pip for beta-ing and knowing how commas work
> 
> Thanks to anyone who sprinted with me and for the rarepair mods for putting this event together!!
> 
> work title from the song "little space" by sxye
> 
> OH ALSO i guess things to mention: obvious au that billy isn't wanda's kid and also this is young avengers loki not mcu loki

Wanda groaned as she opened her work email. She saw the email invite to the annual non-denominational winter party. One that her boss had kindly asked what time would work best for her so that they could all meet her girlfriend that she’d been going on about for months now. Her girlfriend that didn’t exist.

It wasn’t that she didn’t like her coworkers. She loved them, but she had quite a bit of social anxiety about going to the frequent happy hours and ‘team-building’ events so she had started saying that her girlfriend worked odd hours to get out of the events. She pounded her head on her keyboard at the reception desk.

“You alright there, Wands?” Her co-worker Loki asked curiously. 

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just got a bit of a headache.” She lied. 

Loki nodded and looked over her head vaguely. “Your aura is a bit tense. Maybe go sit in the jade healing room?”   
  
Wanda thanked them and looked back at her screen. The cheery invitation mocked her and she was starting to get a bit of a headache. In any other workplace, Loki’s suggestion probably would’ve sounded ridiculous. But they were both practitioners at Strange Natural Healing and Lifestyles. Named after their boss who’s honest-to-gods name was Dr. Strange.

Wanda was due for a break anyway, not that it really mattered. If she needed a break, she could take one as to not bring toxic energy into the healing space. She slipped her shoes off and stepped into the jade room, feeling the earthy air wash over her. The cool jade was nice against on her bare feet and she felt tension seep from her body. Taking one of the loose stones in her hand, she turned it over in her hands.

“Oh!” she said to the empty room. She owed Loki a thank you note or perhaps a card reading. But now she had to get back to her desk to craft a message to her friend Shuri. 

**Hey, can I ask you a huge favor??**

_ I mean you can ask but I might not follow through. What’d you need Wands? _

**I need a date for my work holiday party. I’ve been telling them I have a girlfriend for months to get out of social events and now I need to show up with one.**

_ Oh, that’s no problem. Will there be food? _ _  
_ _  
_ **Yeah, but are you sure? Like this is kinda a fancy thing and I’ve been telling them about you for like months.**

_ Hah, no problem honeybear. Can I wear a suit? Can I assume you’re wearing red? _ _  
  
_

Wanda just blinked at her phone. She hadn’t expected Shuri to be on board so readily. Then again, her friend was in the final stretches of her Ph.D. in Biochemistry and would take pretty much any opportunity for free food.

**Honeybear? And yeah wear whatever you want.**

_ Just trying out petnames for when we’re girlfriending it up in public, sugar. _

**I regret asking you already.**

Shuri just laughed as she tossed her phone back on the lab bench. She looked at the clock and sighed. The undergrads would be coming in soon for their scheduled time and she wouldn’t be able to do much more work. What was the point of getting a higher degree if you couldn’t pull rank for lab times?

“Shuri?” One of her own undergraduate assistants Gwen cut into her spacing out. “I have a request from Dr. Banner for you to cover his class in a few weeks?”

Shuri looked at the tablet that the blonde was holding out. “I can’t that day, I have plans.”

Gwen blinked a few times before saying a small “Oh.”   
  
“I do have a life outside of this lab, Gwen.” Shuri laughed at Gwen’s disbelieving look. “I’m going to my girlfriend’s holiday party!”   
  
The younger girl’s mouth dropped further. “I didn’t even know you had a girlfriend!”   
  
“See? I contain multitudes.” Shuri said smugly. Huh, she was getting mileage out of saying she had girlfriend obligations too. “Now go back to your spiderwebs and I’ll get out of your hair. Nice shave by the way.”   
  


Gwen just stuck her pierced tongue out at Shuri as she left the lab.

\----

“So,” Shuri said as she flopped onto Wanda’s squashy couch and put her feet up on the coffee table, grabbing a container of the takeout that was next to her. “What all does this entail?”   
  
Wanda eyed her shoed feet on the table in distaste until Shuri kicked her shoes off and gave her a ‘well?’ look, mouth full of noodles. “You know, like. Typical work party stuff. Hors d’oeuvres, maybe bad karaoke if we get Wong to drink enough.”   
  
Shuri grinned. “Sounds fun. It’s formal? Do I need to bring anything?”   
  
“No it’s all catered and we do secret Santa so there’s that exchange but nope just yourself. I owe you big time.”   
  
“Nah it’s all good. I already am using it to my advantage to get out of covering a class.” Shuri waved her chopsticks in dismissal. “But I guess if you want to brave my family’s Kwanzaa feast on New Year’s Eve you can.” She paused again. “Shouldn’t you be offended by the Santa thing? Can’t it be secret dreidel?”   
  


Wanda laughed at that, also kicking her feet up where she was next to Shuri. They sat eating Chinese food and watching National Geographic in companionable silence. They had established this routine many years ago when they were freshmen in college, before Wanda dropped out to pursue alternative medicine instead. Shuri was really the only person from her college years she still kept in contact with, due to their similar sense of humor and the fact that they lived in the same dorm all those years ago. 

They ate in relative silence, only interrupted by occasional rustling from Wanda’s large pet tortoise and any commentary on the program they were watching. Shuri reached for their fortune cookies in the takeout bag and tossed one to Wanda. 

A man who waits until tomorrow, misses the opportunity of today

Lucky number: 17

  
  


Wanda read hers out loud and Shuri cackled. “Sounds sexist.”

Wanda just tilted her head in agreement. “Do you want the cookie?”   
  
“Nah. I just like you opening them because of your magic.”   
  
“I’m not magic.” Wanda said with a sigh, knowing this was a futile argument.

“Sure. Anyway, I’ve gotta get goin. Need to feed T’chaikovsky and have a crazy week comin’ up. Text me funny stuff that your coworkers do so I can like, feel like I know them before the big night?”   
  
“Yeah, that makes sense.” Wanda stood up and brushed crumbs off her pants to walk Shuri to the door. “Again. Thanks a lot.”   
  
Shuri just nodded and fiddled with the sleeve of her button-down. On a whim she ducked down and kissed Wanda on the cheek, earning her a yelp from the shorter girl.

“No problem shortcake.”

\-----

As per her request, Wanda started texting Shuri a lot more during her workday. About how Loki and Danny were bickering and it was like watching the sun and the moon fight. About how a woman had screamed everytime Dr. Strange added another acupuncture needle, despite not feeling any pain from them. About watching Billy get progressively more fed up with his tarot deck until he burst into tears and retreated to the meditation room. Wanda had been texting Shuri a stream of live messages about whatever drama with Quentin and his newest beau was being discussed when she realized the other girl hadn’t been responding in a while. For whatever reason, she decided to call Shuri and was glad that she had.

“HEY! Wanda!” Shuri exclaimed into the phone. “My latest tests worked so I’ve been setting up the next phase all morning!”   
  
Wanda looked at the clock. “It’s almost 2 in the afternoon.”   
  
“Wow look at that. Time flies!” Shuri said with enthusiasm.

“Have you eaten at all today?”   
  
“Haven’t gotten around to it but I’ve had uh. _ Kate, how many times have we made coffee today?” _

Wanda sighed and had already started fishing her keys out of her purse. “I’m gonna bring you food so you don’t literally run yourself ragged over there.”

“Aw shucks. You don’t-”

“Nope. I knew there was something off that’s why I called you. You’re gettin’ something to eat. I’ll text you when I’m there.”

Wanda hung up without another word. For whatever reason, she felt a sudden odd nervousness about going to see Shuri at her lab. Wanda hadn’t been over to the local university since she dropped out. She glanced around the side rooms of their common area and saw the Poole twins practicing yoga in one of them. Wade was going on about something and Wanda could tell that Gwen was getting a bit annoyed.

“Gwen? Do you want to run a quick errand with me?” Wanda poked her head in the room and the energetic blonde jumped up immediately. 

“Yeah! Of course! Why me? What do you need?”

“I’m bringing my girlfriend lunch and just wanted company.”    
  
“Oh, is the author trying to establish a merging of friend groups that may result in more than one relationship budding?”   
  
“What?” Wanda didn’t get the Pooles on a good day, but especially not when she was overthinking bringing lunch to one of her closest friends. “It was either you or Danny and I didn’t want him to overanalyze her entire natal chart within minutes of meeting.”

“That’s fair.” Gwen agreed. 

Wanda pulled her car into the drive-thru to order lunch for her and Shuri and now Gwen as well. With arms full of bags of food, she parked her car at the university and made her way to the building with Shuri’s lab inside. 

“Wanda!!” Shuri’s voice rang through the whole hallway as the dark-skinned girl skidded out of her lab and ran up to Wanda. “It worked!!”   
  
Wanda laughed as Shuri scooped her up and spun her around. “You told me! It won’t be any good if you die of caffeine overdose before you publish though!” She giggled as Shuri set her down on her tiptoes and looked at her with shining eyes. “I ordered big so the others can have some too.”   
  
As if on cue, Shuri’s lab assistants poked their heads out of the lab and came out into the hallway as well. There was a lounge a few doors down that they were allowed to eat in and within a few minutes the tables were covered in food wrappings and the sounds of hungry scientists filled the room. Gwen, who Wanda had brought, had struck up a conversation with Shuri’s lab assistant also named Gwen. Her other lab assistant Kate was engrossed in her phone while she shoved a hoagie in her mouth.

“Here, you need something besides coffee.” Wanda muttered, digging a little carton of chocolate milk from the food bag and shoving the straw into it. “Drink up, babe.”

Shuri seemed amused by the pet name but took the carton anyway with a wink. She held Wanda’s gaze for a few moments, making the redhead’s cheeks pink with blush. Both Gwens were watching them with amusement. 

“Well. We should be getting back to work, right Gwen?” Wanda suddenly stood up and brushed crumbs off her skirt. 

“What?” Gwen looked up from showing the other Gwen something on her phone. “Oh yeah, I’ll meet you out in the hallway in a sec.”

Wanda didn’t understand the wink that Gwen gave her but gestured with her head to Shuri and walked into the hall. 

“I’m happy your tests worked.” Wanda said awkwardly.

“Thanks, Wands.” Shuri replied, grinning down at her and bouncing on her toes a bit. “I can’t wait to get started on the next phase.”

“Just remember to get some rest sometimes, yeah?” Wanda reached her hand out and squeezed Shuri’s. “You wanna come over for dinner?”   
  
“Sure.” Shuri ducked her head a bit, grateful that blush wouldn’t show on her skin. “See you later, short stack.” She pressed a short kiss onto Wanda’s forehead before skipping back towards her lab. 

When Kate and lab-assistant Gwen traipsed out of the lounge room, they nodded at Wanda.

“She’s been happier recently. Less weird and twitchy.” Kate said offhandedly.

Gwen Poole came up beside Wanda’s elbow. “They seem like a fun bunch.”   
  
“You seemed to be getting on well with the other Gwen.”   
  
“The author is already regretting putting two people of the same name in this story.” Gwen smirked. “We might get coffee sometime.”   
  


\----

Wanda stroked down to smooth any of the invisible wrinkles on her crushed velvet dress. Shuri was coming to pick her up at any moment and they were going to go to the holiday party. Together. As Fake Girlfriends. Why was she so nervous? Wanda flickered her eyes over to her tarot deck and only had the thought to do a reading for a moment before her doorbell rang. 

“What’d you think, quickie?” She asked her tortoise who she knew was on the opposite side of her bedroom. 

Quicksilver predictably did not respond to her and she watched the balloon tied to him progress down the hallway.

When Wanda opened the door she was greeted with the vision of Shuri in a green brocade suit that fit her frame perfectly. She had a plain black shirt buttoned up under with a thick gold chain around her neck. She was holding a bottle of red wine and grinning widely. 

“Evening, peanut.” Shuri let herself in while Wanda flailed mentally for words. “Want a glass before we leave?”   
  
Shuri took two glasses down from Wanda’s cupboard anyway and poured them each some wine. Wanda finally joined her in the kitchen and took the glass with a small flush. They clinked their plastic tumblers together and sipped the dark liquid inside. 

“You ready?” Wanda asked when they had drained their glasses. “You can still back out.”   
  
“Nah, I’m ready to listen to you magical weirdos get drunk and I want fancy food.” Shuri offered Wanda her elbow and the pair called goodbye to Quicksilver before exiting into the winter evening. 

The holiday party was already in full swing when the two arrived. Dr. Strange had booked the party at the conservatory of poisonous plants. There was arrhythmic music flowing from the speakers and a few of Wanda’s coworkers were dancing or swaying near the food table. Shuri felt Wanda tense up on her arm as a blond guy with tousled hair and what looked to be designer sandals approached. 

“Wanda!! This must be the elusive girlfriend!”   
  
“I wouldn’t say elusive!” Shuri laughed as Wanda’s jaw twitched in irritation.

“It’s not your fault. You’re an Aquarius.” The blond said sagely, nodding.

“Danny!” Wanda said sharply. “We’ve talked about this.”   
  
“I’m sorry! It’s just-”   
  
“He’s just nosy.” Someone with dark hair came up behind Danny and gave Shuri a once-over. “Nice suit.” They gestured down to their own green pants and golden jacket.

Shuri laughed and extended her hand to greet them. “I like you. I’m Shuri.”   
  


“Loki.” They shook hands. “Wanda you can relax, your aura is so tense. We’re not gonna interrogate her.”   
  
“Much.” Another young man walking by commented. Shuri did a double-take at his jacket with an intricate galaxy design. 

“Right.” Wanda said, steering them towards the food and open bar. “We’ll be back.”

Once they had reached the table with hors d’oeuvres Wanda relaxed slightly but still ordered a scotch neat from the bartender. Shuri’s eyebrows raised slightly in amusement and maybe some concern as Wanda took a hearty swallow.

“Sorry.” Wanda said after she had a mouthful of scotch in her. “This…” She waved her toothpicked salmon appetizer around. “Is why I-uh, don’t date much for real.”   
  
Shuri stroked her arm soothingly, hoping that Wanda was a person that found comfort in physical touch. “Hey, it’s ok. I’m a little out of my depth but you’d be the same way with my colleagues.” 

“Yeah, you can get payback.” Wanda conceded, taking another hearty sip of her drink. She took a few deep breaths. “Of course Danny would be who we ran into first, he’s the most in your face of all of them.”   
  
“It’s really ok, Wands.” Shuri pulled her in close with an arm around her waist. “The guy in the galaxy jacket, that’s Billy right? And the older guy in the robes is your boss?”

Wanda nodded and relaxed a bit, going over all of her coworkers' names and such with Shuri from where they were pressed into a corner of the greenhouse-like structure. They both relaxed a bit as the party went on, mingling with the others but never straying far from where they had found relative solitude. 

“Hey look! Wanda, you know what plants you’re next to?” Loki pointed with their bottle of beer. 

Wanda felt her stomach twist as she eyed the white berries on the leaves around her. She saw Shuri also looking at the plants with a raised eyebrow. Shuri looked down at her, pulling her closer to her.

“This ok?” She stroked the hand closer to the crowd through Wanda’s hair to block out the other’s for a moment. 

Wanda swallowed and leaned up onto her tiptoes, letting her eyelashes flutter shut. Shuri must’ve been wearing chapstick or moisturizer, because her lips were soft and relaxed against Wanda’s despite how often she caught the other girl chewing on her lips in a moment of frustration. Their lips brushed a few times chastely. Wanda surprised herself by leaning in a bit further to wrap a hand under Shuri’s suit jacket and stabilize herself a bit on her toes. 

Shuri’s hands wrapped around Wanda’s back and kissed her back with equal energy. When they broke apart, Shuri brushed a bit of smudged lipstick away from where it had strayed from Wanda’s mouth and grinned. Wanda’s fingers brushed over where Shuri’s had been a moment before and they just stayed in a reverie for a moment until they were startled out of it by the DJ, Dr. Strange’s husband, saying it was time for secret Santa exchange. 

\------

“Shuri?” 

Shuri blinked out of her slight daze at her lab bench and saw Kate looking at her in concern. 

“You ok Shuri? You’re a little out of it today.”

“I’m fine. Probably just need something to eat.” Shuri stood up and moved over to her backpack to find a snack.

“Um-” Kate faltered a bit, eyes flickering to the clock. 

“Shit. I’m just out of it today.” Shuri said with a sigh.

“It happens to the best of us.” Kate said reassuringly as they trouped out of the lab, passing Gwen on the way. 

Gwen-their Gwen- was holding hands with the pink-tipped blonde Gwen from Wanda’s work.    
  
“Hey?” Shuri waved at them both. “God I need to pay more attention, when did that happen?”   
  
Kate shrugged and walked off to where her own girlfriend America was waiting by the stairs. Shuri felt like she was out of her depth and hadn’t quite resurfaced from Wanda’s holiday party. 

After they had kissed under the mistletoe, Wanda had kept their hands clasped the rest of the night and even danced with her a little. They had ended the night passed out next to each other in Wanda’s bed, something that they had done countless times before but Shuri felt like maybe it had a different undertone now. Maybe she was overthinking. 

**To: Big Kitty**

**Brother, I need your help**

_ What did you do now. _

**You know how I told you about the girl that I’m bringing to Karamu?** **  
** **  
** _ Oh no _

**Don’t say it like that.**

**Ok maybe do**

**We kissed at her work holiday party on Saturday**

_ Oh NO _

Shuri put her head in her hands and rubbed at her temples. Maybe telling her brother the whole backstory of this fake-dating thing hadn’t been the best idea. But their mother had been so happy that Shuri “was having a life outside of that lab” and bringing someone home for the holiday and well, Shuri couldn’t let that guilt eat at her. She had spilled the whole dumb plan to her brother T’challa who had just laughed and said he would put money on her and Wanda dating by the end of this. At the time she had scoffed but now she felt like she had been the fool all along. 

Shuri unlocked the door to her shitty studio apartment and was only greeted by the sound of her cat yelling for his evening food. As she uncanned the tuna and dumped it into his dish, she couldn’t help but let her brain drift to coming home to someone else. Not just her and the four black paws walking around her space. Shuri blinked out of that train of thought and sighed before pulling a dinner out of her freezer and opening up her graphs on her laptop.

This time of year was Wanda’s busiest time at her work, with lots of people wanting tarot readings for the coming new year. She hadn’t talked to Shuri much since the party, partially because she was actually quite exhausted during and after work and partially because she was awkward. She felt like  _ something _ had to have changed. It didn’t help that she dropped her deck when clearing her room at work and the one card that landed face-up was The Lovers. Wanda put her tarot deck in a time-out in the bottom drawer of her desk and begrudgingly left. 

“See you tonight Billy?” She asked the other stressed-out tarot practitioner. 

“Yeah. I’ll bring jelly donuts.” Billy responded with a weak laugh.

It was the first night of Hanukkah, a tradition she and her brother Pietro had started with their old RA Bucky from when they were both in college. Wanda had opened the invitation to Billy when she had first learned that he didn’t have anywhere to go for the holidays. Quicksilver was sleeping on his heating pad in her living room when she got home and the only mail that she had gotten was junk from the previous tenant.

With a sigh, Wanda went to one of her hall closets and began rummaging around to try and find her menorah. It was in the shape of a T-rex and was one of her favorite possessions. Once the dust had been blown off, she needed to find candles. While Wanda was deep in a bin of odds and ends she heard her front door open and two familiar sets of footsteps. 

“Hey Petes. Hey Buck.” Wanda called to her brother and their friend. “I’m sure you’ve already made yourself at home.”   
  
By the time she emerged with the menorah and candles, Pietro was already flopped over the length of her couch and Bucky was laying next to Quicksilver petting his shell. Wanda flung a candle at her brother but he caught it midair thanks to his sharp reflexes. The two scuffled for a moment before Wanda lost her balance and went tumbling onto the floor.

“Love the holiday season.” Bucky said offhandedly as Wanda chased after Pietro through the tiny apartment.

The buzzer for the apartment rang and Bucky got up to open the door and welcomed Billy in. He, as promised, had a pink bakers box of jelly donuts and was wearing a festive sweater. Once Wanda and Pietro re-joined them, they got to work making their old family latke recipe. Bucky figured out how to stream music through the TV and in no time they were all just crowded onto barstools and in the kitchen.

“How’s your girlfriend, Wanda?” Billy asked as he dug around in her bowl of M&Ms. 

“You have a girlfriend?” Bucky asked her with a raised eyebrow.

“She’s in loooooove” Pietro taunted as he brandished the spoon that they were using to fish the latkes out of the hot oil. “I can tell my baby sister is in deeeeep.”   
  


“I’m only twelve minutes younger than you.” Wanda said, flicking a piece of potato. “And yes, I do.”

“They’re very cute together.” Billy told Bucky, who was mostly just sitting back and taking in the scene. “What?” He didn’t flinch one bit at Wanda’s scowl. 

“Anyway. What about you? Bucky? You seeing any lucky fellas? What about you,  _ klots _ ? I don’t have to ask you, Billy, you get off lucky because you’re still new here.” Wanda joshed her brother a bit as they started migrating to the living room.

“I’ve known you for three years.” Billy said off-handedly as they all sat down and Wanda brought out the candles. 

They all managed to hold off ribbing each other while Wanda lit the Menorah-sorus Rex and read the blessing from her phone. 

“Mazel Tov.”

\-----

“How you feelin’ shortcake?” Shuri asked as she pulled down the long road that her family house was on. 

“Like your family isn’t gonna know what hit them.” Wanda replied with a grin.

A few minutes of awkwardness into their drive, Wanda had noticed a cow on the side of the road and had, in turn, mentioned it. Shuri had jokingly mocked her for being a city girl and the awkward spell over them had been broken. It could have been any of the many times they’d gone for a drive in Shuri’s car except that they were about to pretend to be girlfriends in front of her family. Oh, and it was New Year’s Eve.

“Mama made something kosher.” Shuri assured her as they pulled into the driveway. 

“I’ll remember to thank her. Shall we?” Wanda nodded towards the front door. 

Shuri’s family was all vibrant and welcomed Wanda with warm hugs and words of how grateful they were that Shuri had been having a more active social life and how they’d heard so much about her over the years. Shuri’s mother ushered them up to Shuri’s childhood bedroom to drop off their things as they were planning on spending the night after the festivities. 

“Oh my god.” Wanda stopped halfway up the stairs, looking at the family photos that dotted the staircase. “Look at your hair!” 

Shuri groaned and tried to drag her upstairs quicker, only to stop abruptly at her bedroom door. Wanda bumped into her back and they tripped into her bedroom which hadn’t changed at all since she graduated high school. An authentic Nigerian tapestry hung on one wall, with a large poster of the periodic table of elements on the opposite. There were fake saint candles with pictures of Marie Curie, Rosalind Franklin, and Ada Lovelace on the small and cluttered desk. A bookcase in the corner was weighed down with trophies and medals from-

“How many times did you win the science fair??”

Shuri just shrugged. “I mean... I went to nationals a couple of years.”

“I think baba still has some of your projects in the attic.” Both girls jumped slightly at her brother’s voice from the doorway. “Hey Wanda, I’m T’challa. I’m sure you better know me because of my unfortunate namesake.”   
  
“Don’t talk about my cat when he’s not here to claw you.” Shuri hip-checked him. “Is food ready?”

“Yes. I think mother intends to eat leftovers for next year’s feast.”

T’challa had not quite been overexaggerating as the dining table was completely covered with meats and side dishes and salads. There were more people coming over later for the New Years’ countdown, but only the five of them for dinnertime. T’chaka, Shuri’s father, lifted their common cup and passed it around for them to drink out of and recited a prayer.

“Glory to Bast.” He finished. “We are with family and in good health” 

And they all promptly dug in.   
  
“Mr. Adanna.” Wanda piped up as they were finishing dessert. She shot a wicked grin towards Shuri. “I hear you might have some of Shuri’s old science fair projects.”

T’challa cackled heartily as Shuri groaned and slunk down in her chair, whacking Wanda lightly. 

“Oh my.” T’chaka’s eyes glinted as he grinned widely. “We have all sorts of Shuri’s projects from over the years. She was always tinkering with something or mixing things together. My boy was always the quiet and brooding type, but not Shuri.”

Fortunately, perhaps, for Shuri, the arrival of their extended family and a few of their neighborhood friends after dinner prevented any childhood memories from being unearthed and re-lived for hilarity. Spiked egg nog and mulled wine were broken out as they streamed the countdown in New York. At 11:30, when the fireworks in their town began, Shuri and Wanda bundled up and went onto the roof overhang that was right outside Shuri’s window. 

“There are so many more stars here.” Wanda remarked, looking at the inky sky.

“No there aren’t, there’s just less light pollution.” Shuri laughed and bumped their shoulders together.

“Oh shush, princess. You know what I meant.” Wanda grinned despite herself.

“The mystical and spiritual Wanda Maximoff didn’t know how stars work!” Shuri announced jokingly. They giggled for a few minutes before quieting down into comfortable silence. “Thanks for… all this. It’s been fun.”   
  
Wanda ducked her head a bit and was glad that her hair obscured her flushed face. “Yeah. It has been.”   
  
They looked at each other for a moment before they were startled back into the present by the rest of the people at the party and those who had gathered in the street starting the minute countdown. Shuri proudly did not jump when Wanda’s hand edged over hers at the 30-second mark. She knocked their knees together lightly at 20 seconds, and at 10 seconds they were so close together that Shuri could almost taste the smell of her aunt’s mulled wine from Wanda’s mouth. 

They rang in the new year with a tentative kiss, pressed chastely as if only for the ceremony of it all. Wanda crowded in closer to Shuri and brought her hand to cup the other girl’s cheek, opening her mouth slightly as everyone on the ground cheered for the new year. Shuri met her with an arm around Wanda’s waist and sucked lightly on her bottom lip. When they finally parted, they searched each other’s faces for a moment before dissolving into giggles again.

  
Wanda leaned up to kiss her again. “What’s your resolution, princess?”   
  
“For you to stop calling me princess and start calling me your girlfriend.”   
  
“I can do half of that.” Wanda said solemnly before cracking her face into a smile. “Princess.”

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Comments and kudos feed my family
> 
> the menorah-saurus rex is a real thing, as is tieing balloons to indoor tortoises
> 
> i went to so many broke college kid hanukkah parties with hash browns and jelly donuts and i tried to base shuri's family feast from what google could tell me
> 
> find me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/_AMAMOT) or i’m back on [tumblr](https://askmeaboutmyoctopustheory.tumblr.com/)
> 
> find HeyBoy on [twitter](https://twitter.com/HeyBoyDraws) or [tumblr](https://heyboydraws.tumblr.com/)
> 
> if you're into this smol ship and tbh any smaller femslash marvel ship come join the ScarletScience/Labwitch/whatever this ship is called [discord server!](https://discord.gg/SyFuhTc)


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